Russia accuses U.S. of double standards on rights
Source: Bloomberg, 13-03-2008
Russia said the U.S. State Department's ``latest opus'' on human rights reflects the double standards of a country that uses the issue as a foreign policy tool while failing to examine its own actions.
The Foreign Ministry said in a statement it rejects criticism of Russia's human rights record from a country that ``has in effect legalized torture, uses capital punishment on minors and denies responsibility for war crimes and human rights violations in Iraq and Afghanistan.''
The U.S. report, published two days ago, said President Vladimir Putin's centralization of power in the Kremlin, selective law enforcement and restrictions on aid groups and the media have eroded government accountability. The Foreign Ministry called it ``a hackneyed set of claims.''
Ties between the U.S. and Russia have been strained over the past year by the possible further expansion of NATO into former Soviet republics, American plans to set up missile shield sites in Poland and the Czech Republic and President George W. Bush's support for Kosovo's independence.
The government in Moscow says the moves are part of an effort to isolate Russia and says the U.S. has violated international law when it suits American interests.
Russia said the U.S. State Department's ``latest opus'' on human rights reflects the double standards of a country that uses the issue as a foreign policy tool while failing to examine its own actions.
The Foreign Ministry said in a statement it rejects criticism of Russia's human rights record from a country that ``has in effect legalized torture, uses capital punishment on minors and denies responsibility for war crimes and human rights violations in Iraq and Afghanistan.''
The U.S. report, published two days ago, said President Vladimir Putin's centralization of power in the Kremlin, selective law enforcement and restrictions on aid groups and the media have eroded government accountability. The Foreign Ministry called it ``a hackneyed set of claims.''
Ties between the U.S. and Russia have been strained over the past year by the possible further expansion of NATO into former Soviet republics, American plans to set up missile shield sites in Poland and the Czech Republic and President George W. Bush's support for Kosovo's independence.
The government in Moscow says the moves are part of an effort to isolate Russia and says the U.S. has violated international law when it suits American interests.
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